Exotic New Mars Images From Orbiting Telephoto Studio

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Exotic New Mars Images From Orbiting Telephoto Studio

A new batch of sharp Martian close-ups from NASA's HiRISE camera were released on Sept. 1. HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) has been circling Mars on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for four years now, taking dramatic photos of the red planet with a telephoto lens to make any paparazzi jealous. The camera can focus on objects the size of a beach ball from more than 180 miles away.
The 236 new images, taken between July 8 and July 31, cover the planet practically from pole to pole. They zoom in on terrain ranging from volcanic cones to cratered planes, from wind-swept dunes to crusts of ice. The images even capture evidence of ongoing geological processes on Mars today, like fresh craters that may have formed between January and June of this year.
These are some of our favorites from the new set. But since January, the HiRISE team has been letting the public point the camera. You can suggest new terrain to explore using their "HiWish" feature.
Above: These volcanic cones were formed by hot lava running over water or ice. The heat from the lava boiled the water underneath, and the water burst upwards in an exploding bubble of lava. The explosion threw chunks of molten and solid lava into the air to gather into the cones. These cones are similar in size and shape to cones found in Iceland.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

This image shows part of a 7.4-mile-diameter impact crater on Mars' southern hemisphere. The angle of the sun, coming from the northwest or the left of the image, throws the gullies in the crater into sharp relief. Some of these gullies are thought to have formed by flowing water or melting ice, but others may just be the result of landslides.
The blue-purple areas in the enhanced color part of this image (which is not what Mars would really look like if you were there) show seasonal frosts that remain on the steep slopes facing away from the equator.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

This image shows part of a polar crater that still holds on to some summer ice, as well as beautiful sand dunes sculpted by the wind.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

This image highlights dunes (the darker spots) and exposed sedimentary rocks (the lighter spots) in the northeast part of the Sinus Meridiani crater, which stretches east to west near the Martian equator. The western portion of Sinus Meridiani was the landing site of the Mars rover Opportunity. The whole region is full of rocky outcroppings that record a history of groundwater and erosion.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

This close-up of part of the Melas Chasma, a vast canyon on Mars, exposes layered deposits that may be sediments from an old lake -- though they could also be windblown sediment deposits and volcanic ash.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

This false-color image shows seasonal streaks of material near Mars' north pole.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

This image focuses on a corner of the young Ada Crater, which is about 1.2 miles wide. Ada appears to be two nested craters that formed one after the other in a planetary one-two punch. It could also be a single large crater whose inner ledge slid downward. The crater seems to have exposed two different types of bedrock, the light-toned rock toward the outer edge and the darker rock on the inner edge.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

Another nested crater, aptly named the Bulls-Eye crater, is captured in this image. The central crater could be formed by unusual layers below the surface, or from a lucky second impact.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

This image features lava flows at the base of Olympus Mons, the tallest volcano in the solar system. To the left of the image is a thick flow with a rough surface texture, similar to "aa" flows in Hawaii. The image also features a long trough or channel, the product of a long eruption. At its end, the channel develops a roof and becomes a lava tube. A series of irregular pits can be found where the lava burst out of the tube.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

One of HiRISE's jobs is to search for the ideal landing site for the next Mars rover, the Mars Science Laboratory (colloquially dubbed "Curiosity"). This candidate landing site is in the northeast Syrtis Major Planum, a dark spot between Mars' northern lowlands and southern highlands. It is believed to be a low-relief shield volcano, and its dark color comes from basaltic volcanic rock.
Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona